Studio execs tell Georgia lawmakers that AI could play starring role in movie productions

State Rep. Ed Setzler at the Georgia State Capitol in February 2024. Setzler questioned what all-digital actors and sets could mean for mega franchises at a hearing of the Georgia Senate Committee on Artificial Intelligence on Wednesday. (Matthew Pearson/WABE)

Georgia can be seen across the silver screen, portraying locales from “Stranger Things” Hawkins, Indiana, to Wakanda, home of Marvel’s Black Panther.

And as artificial intelligence technology continues to expand into the entertainment business, Georgia productions could see new techniques filmmakers of the past could only dream of.

AI systems could automatically translate an actor’s dialogue into foreign languages, shifting their mouth movements to match the speech, while retaining their original voice and vocal performance. Directors could even use AI to reboot classic films without the expense of hiring a whole new team, said Frank Patterson, CEO of Trilith Studios in Atlanta, at a hearing of the Georgia Senate Committee on Artificial Intelligence.